The Sandspur

Issue date: 11/11/05 Section: Holt News

Media Credit: Courtesy of KRT Campus

Media Credit: Courtesy of KRT Campus

If you have contemplated a degree in Anthropology but was dissuaded by not having a succinct reply to the question, "What are you going to do when you graduate?" there are numerous reasons why you should once again consider the field of anthropology.  Not only are the materials intellectually stimulating and valuable but anthropology provides critical skills in many industries to include business, advocacy and research.

Anthropology is the study of human behavior.  It explores a range of factors in human society such as culture, human biology and language.  Anthropology includes four broad fields-cultural anthropology, linguistics, physical anthropology and archaeology. 

Anthropologists can study the marriage rituals of indigenous people of small non-industrial lands or the economic system of powerful Western nations.  They can narrow their field of study and concentrate on ethnicity, health, gender, biology or poverty.  They are observers who learn more than they may ever be able to teach.

Anthropological courses are credited with teaching critical thinking, strong oral and written expressions, research and attention to detail.  Therefore, they provide a strong foundation for subsequent graduate level education and training in areas such as law, public health and the social sciences. 

According to the American Anthropological Association (AAA), "Anthropology is the only contemporary discipline that approaches human questions from historical, biological, linguistic, and cultural perspectives." Undergraduate anthropology students learn how to study people and communities while the master's degree students learn how to combine their data and skills to solve problems. 

Family, friends and even classmates may not see the need for anthropology in modern society, adopting the myth that it is solely about digging up prehistoric artifacts and detailing the lives of ancient societies, but those who make hiring decisions are seeing the edge an anthropology background provides.

Their holistic view of the world makes anthropologists an asset for any employer while giving them access to the fields of New Guinea to the board room of a Fortune 500 company and everywhere in between.  In the past, most anthropologists have worked in higher education institutions or exotic locales, but today more are finding themselves in a myriad of occupational settings. 

Whether in the public or private sector, anthropologists help design and implement programs and strategies to improve corporations, non-profit organizations and all levels of government.  FBI, CIA, Department of Housing and Urban Development and The World Health Organization have all employed anthropologists.  Not to mention corporations such as Kodak, Hallmark, IBM and Microsoft have all sought out the services of anthropologists.

Anthropology provides training that is particularly beneficial to the twenty-first century.  With the economy becoming more globalized, the workforce becomes more diverse.  Consequently, the need for communication and cultural sensitivity become more important. Phil Gardner, director of the Collegiate Employment Research and Institute at Michigan State University says, "Most business students have never taken a cultural course." He adds that "Some of the stupid mistakes corporations have made cross-culturally have raised an interest in people who understand those differences."        

Most people want a career that is not only practical but also exciting, a career where they don't wake up and dread the idea of going to work.  Anthropology may be the perfect segue from students to happy professionals.  The discipline offers flexibility and diversity that produce a thrilling and long-lasting profession.  It provides fulfilling careers for those yearning for the nomadic life of field studies while living in the rain forests of Central Africa and it also affords equal satisfaction for those wanting more stable lives wearing suits and ties. "Ideally, I want to find a niche that will enable me to study the role of food in culture and communicate my findings." Says Anthropology major Doreen Barber, "My plan is to travel around the world, eat a lot, and get paid."   

Professor Connie Brown tells why she found anthropology an irresistible career choice.  "I love Anthropology because it gives us the tools to strip away political, emotional and superficial excuses and replace them with insight and understanding for the diverse ways that humans make sense of their world."   

If you never grew out of asking a lot of questions and have an unquenchable desire to learn, this may be the career path for you. Take an anthropology class, it may not be the major you decide to pursue but you will become a better all-around student and you will discover a department full of professors who are passionate about their field. 

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